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jthao · 02/18/2008, 12:49 AM

So here I go again. I started a 210g build a few months ago, but never accomplished it, and gave up. It was due to lack of time and money. I'm a college student, who's unemployed and so money is tight. But here I go with my 180g. Why did I choose the 180? The dimensions of the two tanks are similar, 6x2x2, and the 210 is 6x2x2.5. So I wanted to stay with the 6' length; I tried getting another 210g, but I couldn't find any that will fit my budget. (I sold my AGA 210 for almost nothing, I regret it now.) Anyways, So I found a 180g acrylic tank that was used for freshwater, no overflows, no holes drilled, also no live rocks=less scratches. The stand was nothing to what I want, so I pretty much trashed it. I have a few pieces of equipment that I saved in case this would happen (wanting another big tank), and also most of the equipment I got, I took around 2 months getting it here and there trying to get a good deal on it. (I'm not cheap, just broke.) So here is what I have so far:

180g acrylic tank with blue back
75g AGA glass tank for sump/fuge
Euro reef cs8-3 (30" I can't find a stand to fit this in, the reason for building my own stand)
om 4 way (closed loop)
sequence dart (closed loop)
iwaki 40rxt (return, or closed loop #2 maybe?)
2 x 3/4" seaswirls (on return maybe, or closed loop #2)
mag 9.5, mag 12, and mag 18 (I didn't know which one to use for return, so I wanted to try all three.)

I haven't set my mind yet on plumbing. I need some help/ advice. I don't want any powerheads inside of the tank. So closed loop is for sure. I just don't know if I should run two closed loop plus return, or just one closed loop. I'm thinking about one closed loop continuously through the bottom, three 1/2" holes, and one closed loop with om4way from the top, then seaswirls on return. does this sound like a good plan?? I don't want any drilling through the back because I want the tank to sit up against the wall as close as possible. I will be building the overflows into the tank later this week. So far I just have the stand done. Any suggestions on plumbing/ flow for the tank? Any suggestions on anything, plss comment. thanks in advance.

oh yeah, just a little background: I used to have a 100g reef tank running for about a year, and broke that down to do the 210g build, but that didn't turn out the way I envisioned.

02/18/2008, 12:49 AM	#1
jthao Super Saiyan Join Date: May 2007 Location: NorCal Posts: 2,522	180g build after 210g failed, this one's gonna make it. So here I go again. I started a 210g build a few months ago, but never accomplished it, and gave up. It was due to lack of time and money. I'm a college student, who's unemployed and so money is tight. But here I go with my 180g. Why did I choose the 180? The dimensions of the two tanks are similar, 6x2x2, and the 210 is 6x2x2.5. So I wanted to stay with the 6' length; I tried getting another 210g, but I couldn't find any that will fit my budget. (I sold my AGA 210 for almost nothing, I regret it now.) Anyways, So I found a 180g acrylic tank that was used for freshwater, no overflows, no holes drilled, also no live rocks=less scratches. The stand was nothing to what I want, so I pretty much trashed it. I have a few pieces of equipment that I saved in case this would happen (wanting another big tank), and also most of the equipment I got, I took around 2 months getting it here and there trying to get a good deal on it. (I'm not cheap, just broke.) So here is what I have so far: 180g acrylic tank with blue back 75g AGA glass tank for sump/fuge Euro reef cs8-3 (30" I can't find a stand to fit this in, the reason for building my own stand) om 4 way (closed loop) sequence dart (closed loop) iwaki 40rxt (return, or closed loop #2 maybe?) 2 x 3/4" seaswirls (on return maybe, or closed loop #2) mag 9.5, mag 12, and mag 18 (I didn't know which one to use for return, so I wanted to try all three.) I haven't set my mind yet on plumbing. I need some help/ advice. I don't want any powerheads inside of the tank. So closed loop is for sure. I just don't know if I should run two closed loop plus return, or just one closed loop. I'm thinking about one closed loop continuously through the bottom, three 1/2" holes, and one closed loop with om4way from the top, then seaswirls on return. does this sound like a good plan?? I don't want any drilling through the back because I want the tank to sit up against the wall as close as possible. I will be building the overflows into the tank later this week. So far I just have the stand done. Any suggestions on plumbing/ flow for the tank? Any suggestions on anything, plss comment. thanks in advance. oh yeah, just a little background: I used to have a 100g reef tank running for about a year, and broke that down to do the 210g build, but that didn't turn out the way I envisioned.